Trump widens Texas lead in Republican primary poll, but loses ground in matchup vs. Biden

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Donald Trump has widened his lead among Republican presidential primary candidates in a new Texas poll, but has lost some ground in a hypothetical rematch against President Joe Biden.

The former president enjoys a wide lead over party rivals, as the first-choice candidate for 65% of Republican voters in Texas, according to the poll by the University of Texas/Texas Politics Project. His share is up by three percentage points since October.

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Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is in a very distant second place with 12%, down one point from October. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley is up two points, to 9% in the latest poll.

Vivek Ramaswamy and Chris Christie each gained one point since October.

The poll of 552 registered voters who say they will vote in the Republican primary was conducted between Dec. 1 and Dec. 10.

How do the Republican candidates fare against Biden?

The poll also asked 1,200 registered voters in Texas how they would vote if several of the Republican candidates were the nominee against Biden.

Trump performs the best against the incumbent president in a hypothetical matchup: 45% to 39%. The six-point margin is down from an eight-point margin in October’s poll.

DeSantis would also beat Biden if the election were held today, according to the poll, with a two-point margin, up from one point in October.

Biden has a three-point margin against both Haley and Ramaswamy in the new poll.

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